Military Police trains for combat support

1 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A military police High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicle is staged for a convoy before a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., conducted by U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), May 4. Approximately 80 units from across the U.S. Army Reserve, Army National Guard and active Army are participating in the 84th Training Command's second Warrior Exercise this year, WAREX 91-16-02, hosted by the 91st Training Division at Fort Hunter-Liggett, California. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL2 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –Two teams of U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, find and detain two high-value targets during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL3 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A team of U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, detain a high-value target, played by Capt. Scott Little, with the 181st Infantry Brigade, of Winnipeg, Canada, during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL4 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A team of U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, find and detain a high-value target during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL5 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A convoy of gunner vehicles pull security in a makeshift village during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., conducted by U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL6 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A team of U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, prepare to clear a building in a makeshift village during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL7 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A team of U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, clear a building in a makeshift village during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Cali., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL8 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –Sgt. 1st Class Malcolm Russell, a U.S. Army Reserve observer-coach trainer with the 91st Training Division, of Camp Parks, California, plays the role of a high-value target during a cordon and search training lane conducted by a platoon from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL9 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A team of U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, detain a high-value target during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL10 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A convoy of gunner vehicles kicks up dust during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., conducted by U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL11 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldier from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, pulls security outside of a building during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL12 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –1st Lt. Danielle Foley, a U.S. Army Reserve military police platoon leader from Phoenix, Arizona, briefs Third Platoon, 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, before conducting a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL13 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, take notes on a mission briefing before conducting a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL14 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –Spc. Kevin Helms, a U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldier of Phoenix, Arizona, with the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, looks through a window of an M1117 Armored Security Vehicle before a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL15 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –Pvt. Ashley Crager, a U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldier from Tempe, Arizona, with the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, looks through a pair of binoculars before a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL16 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –Spc. Adrianna Harris, a U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldier from Los Angeles, with the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, ground-guides an M1117 Armored Security Vehicle in preparation for a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL17 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –Pvt. Anthony Peterson, a U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldier from Apache Junction, Arizona, with the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, rides in the gunner turret during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL18 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A team of U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, clear a building in a makeshift village during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL19 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –Two teams of U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, find and detain two high-value targets during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL20 / 20Show Caption +Hide Caption –A team of U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 56th Military Police Company (Combat Support), of Mesa, Arizona, find and detain a high-value target during a cordon and search training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif., May 4. (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT HUNTER-LIGGETT, Calif. -- Army Reserve military police from the 200th Military Police Command have been training in the field on combat support and detainee operations this May.

"We're the force of choice," said Sgt. 1st Class Marcus Brown, who is a military police trainer working for First Army at Fort Hunter-Liggett during a Warrior Exercise, known as WAREX.

"Bottom line, an MP company can not only go out in the battlefield and be a force multiplier, but we can also be a quick reaction team. We can train local police and host nation police … We carry a lot of firepower, and on top of that, we're Johnny on the spot. A good MP team, no matter what, will be there, no fail," said Brown.

During this WAREX cycle -- which is overseen by the 91st Training Division and included Army Reserve, National Guard and active duty Soldiers from 80 different units -- there were two military police units in the field. The 160th Military Police Battalion, of Tallahassee, Florida, primarily handled detainee operations and battlefield strategy along with other battalion counterparts. The 56th Military Police Company, of Mesa, Arizona, specializes in combat support, and trained on a multitude of infantry-type skills.

"A lot of people, when they think of MPs, they just think, 'Oh, you're the guys that give people speeding tickets for going five over.' In reality, so much of what we do is in direct support of combat operations," said Sgt. Mason Miller, attached to 56th MP Company.

The company trained on cordon and search missions, base security, setting up traffic control points and conducting attacks. They conducted convoys with High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicles and Armored Security Vehicles. Their firepower included everything from M9 pistols up to .50-cal M2 Bradley machine guns, and MK19 grenade launchers.

"Our end state, of course, is to bring support to the battlefield, by focusing on the three primary (principles of) shoot, move, communicate," said Capt. Scott Breseman, commander of 56th MP Company.

"We hope to master the basic warrior tasks and skills, work on our finer points of doing movement, movement control, (operating) outside the wire … day after day, building repetition … accomplishing whatever that mission is," he said.

The entire annual training lasted more than two weeks, advancing from individual training lanes and building up to full-fledged field training exercises with scenarios injected at a moment's notice.

"I like that we get to do so much cool stuff. There's so many different jobs you can do as an MP," said Miller.

"I know that from personal experience after coming up from an E1 to E5 that Soldiers learn from enjoying what they're doing. They're having fun. Not by sitting through power points all day. So I like to make the training as interesting as possible, to help them pique their interest to enjoy it a bit more," he said.

The training areas at Fort Hunter-Liggett features multiple field operational bases, outposts, makeshift villages, dirt roadways for Counter-IED lanes, virtual simulators and training support from the 91st Training Division. These facilities allow a level of realism normally not available at a reserve center.

"Instead of reading straight form a pamphlet, we're getting up and we're doing the things we're learning about. We're doing staggered column formations. We're doing short marches to show how they work … I think that keeps (Soldiers) more engaged."